A Gift of Dust

Winds howl at dusk, a mournful cry  
Main drag barren but the dust  
The stench of fear thickens the sky  
Anticipation feeds on dread and lust  

The ragged things crawl from the shade  
Starving for the blood to spill  
For their feast, a pact was made  
Death obeys their haunting will  

They leer at two who bear the mark  
Knowing fate must break the chain  
One shall crumble into the dark  
The other bound to live in pain  

The duel begins, grim law decrees  
Terror flickers in grim stance
Two may fall, but one must cease  
A pact of death for this final dance

A flash ignites; the silence cracks  
The barrels roar, the lead takes flight  
A shadow folds, his soul turns black  
His breath consumed by endless night  

A corpse meets dust with crimson grace  
Life drains from his lips in streams  
The ragged things wear death's embrace  
Their eyes alight with wicked dreams  

Behind locked doors, the whispers rise  
Why can't these devils claim their due
Yet evil walks where hope still dies  
And only death can see it through